With the advent of microminiaturization of electronic components and the improvement in performance of such elements, the development and availability of small sophisticated audio surveillance devices has dramatically increased. The widespread use of such devices poses a formidable problem in maintaining the secrecy of sensitive information.
To combat the problem, a number of products have been designed to detect the presence of audio surveillance devices. However, such equipment generally is limited to providing an indication that there is a surveillance device in the immediate area, and insufficient information is developed to pinpoint its location. Thus, it usually is necessary to conduct a thorough search of the area to locate the device, commonly referred to as a "bug".